Amsterdam, November 13, 1997:
The OECD Conference 'Dismantling the Barriers to Global Electronic Commerce' to be held from 19th -21st November 1997 in Turku, Finland, is to reach a truly global audience in real time.

EUnet has brought together various technologies and partners including RealNetworks, Telenor and Precept Software, to ensure that the coverage of events in Turku will be the most impressive demonstration yet of how the Internet can routinely be used to bring events and information directly to a truly worldwide audience.

"We feel the OECD Turku conference is a vital forum to help remove barriers to electronic commerce, an area we feel is crucial in the progress towards a real information economy," comments Johan Helsingius, EUnet International's Director of Product Development and Marketing. " We are therefore very pleased to be able to work with the OECD in helping distribute and share not only the information from the event, but also the feel and the spirit".

"We believe that real-time multimedia broadcasting is one of the most exciting applications on the Net," continues Helsingius. "Following our tradition of working together with other industry leaders and leading-edge technology providers, it is natural for EUnet to partner RealNetworks, the de facto industry standard in streaming audio and video, as well as Precept Software, who allow high-quality video multicasting for desktop viewing over intranets and extranets. Our redundant backbone network using both terrestrial and satellite capacity completes the equation, which adds up to a powerful and flexible capability to provide live coverage of events cost effectively anywhere in the world to whoever wants to view them."

How it Works

A schematic diagram showing the setup for the OECD event can be read and/or downloaded from our Website at: http://www.EU.net/press_material

Webcasting to the world: The events in Turku will also be simultaneously fed in Real Audio/Video format to a number of EUnet servers throughout Europe via EUnet's backbone so that anyone with an Internet connection can access the event as it happens, with both video and sound, using Real Player from RealNetworks, the industry standard for delivering streaming audio and video across the Internet. Employed strategic use of multicasting in EUnet's backbone means that the network load does not increase, no matter how many viewers are watching the event. At locations without a national server viewers should "tune in" to the main server in Amsterdam. Location details can be found on: http://www.turku.EU.net

The Webcast of the Forum over the Internet by EUnet will provide real-time coverage of the opening addresses, keynote presentations and the concluding sessions. In addition to the live broadcast, summaries of daily events can be found at the Webcast site http://www.turku.EU.net, from where the required RealPlayer software can also be downloaded. The event will also be recorded to allow parts of the conference to be seen after the event.

Partners

"Precept Software is very pleased to be working with EUnet, OECD and the other partners involved in the transmission of high quality video for this event", notes Andy Hall, Director of Sales, Europe. "IP multicast datatransmission and standards such as MPEG are helping to extend the use of video in applications over corporate networks and increasingly the Internet that were previously only possible with expensive analogue technology."

Paul Ayres, RealNetworks' Managing Director for Europe comments: "In a similar way to how television and radio infrastructures are created to serve the masses, RealNetworks and EUnet are building a European Internet broadcast infrastructure that delivers news, information and entertainment materials to all Internet users The coverage of events in Turku will be the first of many examples of how our partnership is bringing this about."

About the OECD event

About EUnet
Established in 1982 and the first European provider of services for business use, EUnet was instrumental in creating Europe's Internet infra structure. Today, EUnet International provides one-stop shopping for corporate Internet access in Europe with a network of 42 countries and over 500 PoPs (Points of Presence). Via its transit-free backbone, EUnet International offers the business community a wide range of turnkey solutions from full-service, centrally-managed connectivity and Intranets to mobile access, Webcasting, Web Storefront and Electronic Commerce solutions.
http://www.EU.net

About RealNetworks
RealNetworks, formerly Progressive Networks, based in Seattle, WA and London, is the recognised leader in the streaming media market. It develops and markets software products and services designed to enable users of personal computers and other consumer electronic devices to send and receive audio, video and other multimedia services using the Web.
http://europe.real.com
http://www.real.com

About Precept Software
Precept Software, Inc., was formed in March 1995 to develop and market standards-based network video applications for the entire enterprise. The company's flagship product, IP/TV, delivers TV-quality, full-motion video to every desktop PC using existing network infrastructure for such applications as corporate communications, employee training, distance learning and dissemination of video news to the workplace.
http://www.precept.com

About Telenor
Based in Oslo, Norway, (and with subsidiaries throughout Europe,) Telenor Satellite Services offers extensive telecommunications services for businesses around the globe, including point- to-point, point-to-multipoint and data broadcast services, and has satellite networks and international gateways deployed worldwide Via its Inmarsat activities based on the Eik coast earth station in Norway, Telenor Satellite Services is the world's largest operator within the Inmarsat System.
http://www.telenor.no